'Murder weapon' picture released

Photographs of the evidence were released by Dyfed-Powys Police

A photograph of a 2.5kg barbell that was allegedly used by a teenager to murder a woman walking her dog in Carmarthenshire has been released.

Pictures of a dog lead, trainers and a hooded top belonging to the defendant - all of which had Kelly Hyde's blood on them - were also issued by police.

It came after a forensics expert told Swansea Crown Court said there was a "billion to one" chance that the blood had not come from barmaid Ms Hyde, 24.

A 17-year-old youth denies murder.

The jury at his trial has heard that Ms Hyde suffered "terrible injuries" to her head, inflicted by a barbell from a set of weights.

She had been walking her whippet dog Scrappy home along a bridle path near Ammanford after dropping off her car for an MOT on 27 September, 2007.

Her dead body was discovered face down in a stream three days after she disappeared.

Karen Alexander, a forensic scientist, told the court she used a DNA sample taken from Ms Hyde and found it matched blood on the training shoes, which were found at the Ammanford home of the defendant.

The lead was shown to the jury at Swansea Crown Court Enlarge Image

Blood from Ms Hyde was found on the laces, between the black stripes of the shoes and the interior tongue.

She told the jury that the blood was a positive "match probability" to Ms Hyde of one billion to one.

Asked to account for how blood could have got into the stitching of the shoes, she said: "That is typical of what you would see if, for example, a shoe has been cleaned or wiped."

Mrs Alexander said that she had also carried out DNA testing on the barbell, which was found in undergrowth near the murder scene. The court was told the barbell's "twin" was found in the defendant's home.

She also tested the dog lead Ms Hyde had used to walk Scrappy, which was found in the attic at the youth's home.

Kelly Hyde suffered violence which was 'gross in the extreme'

Mrs Alexander said she was able to retrieve an almost complete DNA profile of Ms Hyde from blood on the barbell, with a one in 290 million match probability.

Ms Hyde's blood was also found on several areas of the dog lead.

A hooded top, which the youth is accusing of wearing on the day of the murder, revealed poor blood samples and the odds of the stains not coming from Ms Hyde's blood were only 700 to one.

Huw Davies, defending, cross examined Mrs Alexander who agreed that the blood on the training shoes was barely visible to the naked eye.

Mr Davies asked: "Are you saying that the shoes have been deliberately cleaned so as to eradicate any blood?"

Mrs Alexander: "I would not use the word 'deliberately' to imply an intent."

Following the hearing, Dyfed-Powys Police released photographs of the evidence.

The case continues.